Fat vs. Muscle

Back in January, I wrote a post called "Weighty Matters" and talked about the difference weight can make in running.  I made a goal to lose a minimum of 5 pounds by my marathon.  I haven't seen much progress on the scale lately.  Fortunately there are other ways to measure fitness.  One of these is in measurements.  I took my measurements in March and again last week and had lost about 2 inches.  I knew I was feeling smaller and my legs are definitely feeling more muscular, so I was glad to see the progress on the tape.

It's the old "muscle weighs more than fat" explanation.  Which isn't quite accurate ~ muscle weighs the same as fat... it just takes up a lot less space. This is the best explanation I've ever found: "A woman weighing 150 pounds with 19% fat will look much smaller (and be much healthier) than a woman at 150 pounds with 35% fat. They weigh the same, yet the composition is different. Because muscle is more dense than fat, the person with less fat and more muscle will look smaller."

What 5 pounds of fat looks like

What 5 pounds of muscle looks like

So if I'm weighing the same, but taking up less space that translates to stronger muscles and a faster runner.  If you're on a weight loss journey and see the scale stall, take some measurements away from the scale.  How does a certain skirt fit?  Is your watch looser around your wrist?  Pull out that old tape measure, write down a few key measurements, then recheck in about a month.